Protecting Your Interests When Working with Contractors
How to protect your interests when you are dealing with contractors for a home building or home improvement project.
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Is a Home or Building Contractor Bound by a Written Estimate of a Job?
As a general rule, a contractor is not bound by an estimate–written or otherwise.
→ Read MoreHow Will You Know If Your Property Is Condemned?
If your property has been condemned, you will be notified in writing by a government agency. In some instances, you may also be served with a summons and complaint. If you do receive such a notice, it is important to understand that it doesn’t mean the property is being condemned because it is worthless or has deteriorated and is not up to code. Rather, the government needs the land for public use. Public uses for which land is condemned may include, among other uses, the construction of airports, schools, roads, parks, railroads, housing projects, and/or other public buildings.
→ Read MoreHow Can You Keep the Government from Condemning Your Property?
In order to resist the condemnation of your property, you will need to argue your case at a hearing and present convincing evidence. There are two different grounds on which you can resist the condemnation. First, you can argue that the taking of your property is not necessary. Second, you can argue that the monetary offer that was made to you is not ‘just compensation’ for the property. In either case, you will need to have clear evidence to support your claim that your property should not be condemned, and to get the court to agree with you.
→ Read MoreCan a single, straight person adopt?
Whether or not a single parent adoption is possible will vary depending on the laws of the state. Your chance of success may also be different based on whether you want to arrange a public or private adoption, and on whether you want to adopt an infant or an older child, such as a foster child. In general, however, while it may be more difficult for a single person to adopt, it is becoming more readily acceptable for this to occur.
→ Read MoreShoplifting, Stealing, and Theft: A First Time Offense
Shoplifting is a criminal offense. Shoplifting can cover everything from candy to alcohol, combs to jewelry, and cleaning supplies to computer equipment. Even if this is your first offense, you can be charged with a felony.
→ Read MoreWhat are false pretenses?
When an individual commits the crime of false pretenses, they misrepresent a fact in order to acquire someone else’s property. Obtaining property through false pretenses is a crime, punishable in most states by fines and imprisonment. While state laws vary in defining this crime, the general idea is the same: to be found guilty of false pretenses, the prosecutor must show that the individual acquired the property at issue by intentionally misstating a fact.
→ Read MoreDo biological grandparents have any rights after adoption?
In the case of an adoption, the biological grandparents of a child will typically no longer have rights in terms of the child once the adoption has taken place. This is standard rote in all states, although exceptions also exist.
→ Read MoreWhat Is Condemnation?
Condemnation occurs when a local, state, or federal government seizes private property and compensates the owner. The power of the government to do this is called eminent domain, which essentially means the government takes private property for public use. The property owner is entitled to just compensation for the property during condemnation, but he does not have to give his approval of the sale.
→ Read MoreHow is the value of property damage determined?
Property damage valuation is an art form that may require the services of a professional or expert appraiser. If the property has been completely destroyed so that it is of no further use and has no salvage value, the measure of damages (or the amount you will get for your property damage) can be set at the fair market value of the property immediately before its loss.
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